NOVEMBER 4, 2024 – The Intelligent Mail Locker System (IMLS) program saves single Sailors time and money by modernizing mail call.
Previously, single Sailors were required to pay an average annual fee over $100 to rent a USPS mail receptacle from an off base post office. Not only was this logistically inconvenient, but the receptacles at these locations only accepted USPS items. By using the IMLS, Sailors can receive deliveries from USPS and other major carriers like UPS and FEDEX.
Timing was another issue.
By offering a 24/7 access solution, Sailors who would otherwise have difficulty making it to the post office during regular business hours, now have the option to pick up mail at their convenience.
The pickup process is simple.
Sailors receive email notification when they have mail ready for pick up. That same email has a unique QR code that, once scanned, tells the IMLS which locker to open. After retrieving their mail, Sailors simply shut the locker door and continue with their day.
“I usually pick up packages after work, which means the window is closed,” said Hector Napoles, NAVSUP FLC Pearl Harbor Logistics Specialist Seaman Recruit. “With the mail lockers I don’t have to worry about the time, they are available 24/7. It’s nice to be able to walk in, skip the line at the window and use my phone to get my packages.”
Tommie Tate, director of the Navy Postal Center of Excellence and his team made a concerted effort to streamline mail pick up.
“We identified an opportunity to provide services that would significantly improve personnel quality of life,” said Tate. “We believe these lockers give Sailors one less thing to worry about.”
In an effort to provide customers convenient access to their mail, the NAVSUP Postal Support Office started working on the IMLS program in 2017. After a year of development, the first lockers were installed in 2018 onboard Naval Air Station (NAS) Jacksonville and Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.
The NAVSUP Postal Support Office’s mission to meet all customer postal needs while adhering to delivery requirements requires a significant amount of coordination with various fleet logistics center (FLC) contracting offices, NAVSUP financial personnel and FLC region postal directors.
“This is just one of many initiatives in place to streamline postal operations and ensure customer needs are met for official and personal mail,” said Tate. “We have come a long way over the past seven years, leading the other services in all areas, but there is still more work to do.”
Story by Matthew Morrison
Naval Supply Systems Command